Calpol
by DAISY989
Summary: This is my version of the much written post war romance between Severus Snape and Hermione Granger. : The title will make sense eventually.
1. Chapter 1

This is an SSHG fic, but they have to build it up, so please be patient with me!

I haven't made that many changes to JKR's version, but here are the main ones:

Obviously Snape survives,

Ron and Hermione do not end up together (again obvious!)

Fred does not die (I just cannot bear to live without him :P)

* * *

Fifteen students stood crowded into a fifth floor bathroom. They formed a circle around the two boys who stood glaring at each other, their wands drawn. The bathroom was awash with emerald and crimson as the two boys barked insults at each other. The noise of their shouts and the resulting rabble from the crowd grew steadily, reverberating around the bathroom and spilling into the closest corridors. Suddenly, the raven haired boy bearing the serpentine emblem let out a mighty bellow and a flash of purple shot from his wand. The Gryffindor managed to shield himself in time, causing the curse to backfire. It careened into an ornate mirror, shattering the glass into a million tiny pieces that skittered into the sink below and flew wildly at the students. Most of the crowd ducked and shielded their faces, but the two challengers remained locked in their fury. The other boy roared as befitted his house and spun his wand around his face before sending a golden jet of magic at the Slytherin. In his haste the Gryffindor boy had let aim fall by the wayside and the spell skimmed his opponents arm, singing the robes there, before exploding against one of the cubicle doors. The resulting noise made the assembled shy away before the boys returned to their fiery duel.

Two corridors away, a bushy haired young woman was curled on her sofa reading when she heard the cubicle explode. She stood up quickly, setting her book aside and left her quarters to investigate the source of the noise. The same distance away on the other side of the bathroom a hook-nosed man looked up from his marking and frowned. He pulled on a billowing cloak and swept from his rooms.

Most of the teachers at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry held their quarters on the fifth floor because it was rarely disturbed by the troublesome din of the students. So, when Professors Snape and Granger heard the recognisable sounds of a wizarding duel their hearts immediately span into a frenzy of cruel memories from times past. However, they soon realised that some students must be out past curfew and they scurried towards the disturbance. Well, Hermione did, Severus cannot be described as hurrying; he glides.

Hermione reached the bathroom first. Her eyes registered the water escaping beneath the door from the broken cistern and her ears heard the jeering and shouting from within. She pulled out her wand and strode inside the room just as Severus rounded the corner.

"That's enough!" He heard her exclaim before he turned into the bathroom.

This was when he realised that the Sorting Hat had been right to place her in Gryffindor; she was very brave. She had marched between the boys and was glowering at them with pure anger, despite it being clear that this was no petty dispute and powerful spells had been cast. He watched as she drew both of their wands towards her without speaking a word. The Slytherin boy struggled against the restrains that she now bound them with and howled foul words at her concerning her blood status, her unworthiness to teach and even her informal attire. As the words left the boy's mouth Severus looked at Hermione for the first time. She was wearing soft silk pyjamas, the trousers of which fell to just above her knees and the top half comprising of a thin and flimsy camisole. Her hair fell haphazardly down her back and the muggle make-up she wore during the day, was barely visible. Severus knew that a lot of the student body respected Hermione and he also knew that a large proportion of the males, and a few of the females, found her attractive. However, he thought that the open-mouthed stares that were focused on her chest at that moment were incredibly distasteful.

He knew she was capable of dealing with this situation alone, but the rising anger that was apparent on her face as the Slytherin continued his tirade encouraged him to stay and watch the fireworks. He leant against the door frame, the students closest taking a step away from him.

"You disgust me!" The Slytherin boy finally yelled with as much loathing as he could muster.

"You idiot! Take that back!" the Gryffindor roared.

"Are you quite finished?" Hermione uttered quietly with undisguised anger brewing beneath her calm exterior.

"Nowhere near!" The Slytherin hissed making Severus ashamed of his stupidity and inability to read the severity of the situation.

"Do you permit me to punish your student Professor Snape?" Hermione said politely, not turning her head.

Severus quickly hid his expression of surprise and replied in his cold manner, "Go ahead."

The Slytherin boy looked up into the face of his Head of House as the hook-nosed man raised one eyebrow. The boy paled and looked back towards his Charms Professor, but she turned away from him after tightening his constraints.

"Mr Baker," she addressed the other boy, "you will serve a detention with me on Friday evening at 7pm. You're antics in this bathroom have also lost your house 150 points."

A collective moan rippled through the gathered Gryffindors as they were already trailing behind Slytherin and it was nearing the end of the year.

"Now, could someone inform me of how many points Slytherin now lead by?" Hermione inquired from the silent crowd.

One smug looking boy with large muscles, whom Hermione recognised as a Slytherin beater answered her question, "That would be 370 points!"

"Wow, most impressive," she smiled sweetly at the beater.

Despite himself, Severus smile as his mind connected the dots before the students did.

"Well, Mr Macabre, I think _your_ antics within this bathroom and your subsequent behaviour towards a member of staff will tot up to… let's say… 371 points?"

The gathered Slytherins began to grumble immediately as the Gryffindors cheered and called thanks to their Professor. Some Slytherins began to react towards them, but Hermione instantly interceded by continuing her speech.

"Also, Mr Macabre, you will receive a detention each night with me for the rest of this week and next. In addition to this, I will be referring you to the Ministry for using banned vocabulary and for expressing an opinion that has been outlawed among the wizarding community." Her voice became much more menacing as she said, "This type of behaviour is unacceptable and will not be permitted."

She then twisted her wand in a complex movement over the other two wands in her hand. They shook violently for a moment before releasing two bright streaks of light. She smiled a devious smile and raised her eyebrows.

"You stupid boy!" Severus Snape spat from the doorway glaring between the wands and the Slytherin.

"Yes, your Head of House is most certainly right there, Mr Macabre, not the most intelligent thing, using an illegal curse. This shall also have to be reported to the Ministry, will it not?"

The Slytherin boy did nothing but glower as Hermione undid their restraints and returned their wands

"You are dismissed, but you should all learn from this and Mr Macabre I shall see you tomorrow in my study at 7pm."

The crowd trooped out of the destroyed bathroom, Severus dragging Macabre into the hallway with some hissed words. Hermione watched them go before turning to repair the bathroom.

"Professor?" A tentative voice said.

She turned to see Hugh Baker stood in the doorway looking apologetic. She merely raised her eyebrows, knowing the confident boy needed nothing more from her.

"I just wanted to apologise for disturbing you and Professor Snape and also for causing damage to school property. It's just that… Macabre's been scaring and insulting some of the muggleborn girls in Gryffindor and he antagonised me. I know I shouldn't have reacted in such a way."

He stepped into the room and began to repair the broken mirror.

"It's okay Hugh, chivalry and pride are two of the reasons you were placed into Gryffindor, you should not apologise for them. In the end, the right conclusion has been reached and Mr Macabre shall get what he deserves, however, next time there are better ways to go about it." She smile sincerely at him.

Hugh laughed, "I'll try, but I can't promise you anything."

Hermione let herself laugh, "I didn't expect you too, I'm used to trouble makers like you," she laughed and he covered his mouth in mock surprise.

"Well, you are one of the Golden Trio, Professor," she smiled, but said nothing as her mind recoiled at the words. "which should make him treat you with more respect, 'cos to be honest, you rock Professor!" He laughed as the mirror joined itself back together looking as perfect as the day it was created. "Well, that's that, see you in class tomorrow, Professor Granger."

"Remember, I want 2000 words on the Colloportus and Alohomora charm," she said slipping into her teacher persona for protection.

"Yes, Professor," he called to her as he ran from the room.

The final shards of porcelain and wood floated back to their rightful homes under the gentle guidance of Hermione's wand, before she turned and left the room. She began walking down the corridor towards her quarters and the waiting book there. Before she had taken more than ten steps she became aware of someone else in the dark corridor. Lighting her wand with the obligatory, "Lumos," she stepped around the corner to find a red-faced Severus Snape hissing at Macabre. She was pleased and surprised to see that the arrogant boy looked in some way ashamed.

"I shall expect to see you in my study directly after your detention with Professor Granger," Snape stated before dismissing the boy with a wave of his hand.

"Don't keep him too long tomorrow, I'd rather not be up all night." He looked at her without his usual sneer, Hermione even thought she saw a flash of humour in his eyes.

Without knowing why she did it she spoke quietly as he brushed past her, "I thought we were finally getting somewhere with these idiots."

"We are Granger."

With that he carried on walking and she listened to his cloak sweeping the ground and his quite footfalls until her ears were straining. She let her mind wash with the words Macabre had said previously and then her synapses pulled her to darker times lurking in her past. A lone tear streaked down her face before she rushed back to her quarters and collapsed into bed, her book left open on the sofa.

____________________________________________________________________Hope you liked it!


	2. Chapter 2

I just remembered that I didn't put the obligatory, "I don't own or make profit from the characters, setting yadda yadda yadda" on the last chapter, so there it was!

I doubt that I shall ever explain how Ron and Hermione's relationship ended in the story, so for now let me just tell you that it was amicable and was merely because they were not meant for each other.

* * *

Severus Snape let his head fall back as his eyelids drooped. Ever since Nagini's venom had slithered through his veins he found it hard to maintain the energy he needed to get through the day. He endeavoured to find some solution to this problem, however, so far his efforts were unsuccessful. Severus felt the damp of his classroom more now, he felt the cold rush of air when he walked into the dungeons and he felt the colds stares of his students as they wondered how he had survived such a fatal bite. Soon they would all know. Whilst he had been in the Dark Lords service he had developed an antidote and kept a vile of it constantly on his person. He had, under many stern glances and harsh words, told Minerva of his "miraculous" recover, and she had told him that "such a discovery was marvellous and simply must be circulated". So, he published an article in Potioner's weekly and the antivenin had been dispersed throughout the wizarding world, even though there were only three other snakes of Nagini's kind known to them. The article was hugely respected in the potioning world, but the story of his recovery was yet to spread to the main populous. This was about to change; The Prophet were due to run the "headline" news the next day. Severus had received a letter asking if he would give them an exclusive; a request he had declined to answer.

Recently, the students had been pushing his last nerve with their night-time antics so he had taken to standing in the Slytherin common room watching them all go to bed. It worked well. He stood not moving, not speaking, just watching them. Many of them scuttled to bed as soon as he arrived to avoid his ominous presence and none had managed to escape into the castle since he had started his vigil. He only had to stay half an hour and the fear of him returning would stop them from trying.

So, now he rose from his seat and made his way towards the Slytherin common room. As he neared the concealed entrance he heard a faint sound to his left wheeling silently, drawing his wand and letting his adrenaline control his actions he moved forward. He saw two dim shadows in the hallway ahead. They were both too short to be what his mind had immediately jumped to and he lowered his wand, ready to reprimand the students. He straightened his posture and was about to clear his throat when he heard their hushed whispers.

"I'm telling you, that bitch will not survive after speaking to me like that!" Who the hell does she think she is, the filthy Mudblood!" Severus could easily make out the grumble of Macabre and he took a step back into the shadows.

"Victor you can't do anything to her, they'll all know it was you. Plus isn't she like super scary, helping defeat Him an' all, that's a pretty big feat." The other voice was more difficult to pick out, but Severus had narrowed it down to one of three Slytherin boys.

"You think I can't take that silly little bitch?" The question hung in the air and their was a shuffling and an intake of breath, "And don't worry about them knowing it was me, I'm going to scare her to death," Macabre laughed manically as the other boy began to talk again.

Severus receded down the corridor a few steps and then called out, "Who's down here? I will not tolerate this insolence and disrespect of the school rules!"

He lit his wand and came face to face with Macabre and the now named Travis Hendrickson. Macabre stared at him icily before sweeping past towards the common room. Slowly, Severus followed him, almost breathing down his neck as he walked all the way to his dormitory door.

"Goodnight Victor, sweet dreams."

Severus looked straight into his eyes as he closed the door and those few seconds of eye contact meant that he could slip into his mind and ensure that his dreams weren't so sweet after all.

* * *

The next day at breakfast Severus watched Macabre walk slowly towards the Slytherin table. He sat down heavily, rubbing his face and nursing the black bags under his eyes. He lazily dragged a plate of sausages and egg towards him as his friends looked at him warily. He stabbed at his food angrily and Severus couldn't help the malicious smile that spread across his face as he looked at the sleep deprived boy.

* * *

Sorry, that this chapter isn't very long, but I am writing this fic alternating between Severs and Hermione's viewpoint and there was nothing else approprate to go into this chapter.

Thanks to Literary Fantasy and DeceptiveFates who added this story to their story alert! :D

And thanks to Flamegirl5500 who reviewed! :D


	3. Chapter 3

Okay, so I am now aware that it is not Sunday, was rather confused by the Easter bank holidays and then some ludicrous hours at work and now I have finally managed to get this chapter out, very sorry : )

* * *

Sitting in the window seat in her rooms Hermione tore open a bar of Honeyduke's chocolate and flicked open her book. She had been sat less than an hour, which by her estimation was not long enough with a god book, when there was a knock on her oak door. She swept to the door and opened it with a smile. Her eyes took in the visitor, standing in the sunny corridor smiling broadly at her.

"Good morning Professor Granger, I'm sorry to bother you on such a beautiful Sunday morning, but I am struggling with my Potions essay and the thought of asking Professor Snape for help is rather daunting to say the least." Jacob McGivern was stood looking at her with pleading eyes and she had to resist he the urge to laugh.

"Of course, just a second," she disappeared into her room, leaving the door slightly ajar while she wrapped her chocolate back up and closed her book before joining Jacob in the hallway.

He was an intelligent boy with a caring disposition, but unfortunately, as it usually went with teenage students, he was unpopular because he was dedicated and spoke well.

So, together they walked to Hermione's classroom, where she helped him with his Potion's essay. She thought it was a particularly challenging topic for his year group, but she could see why Severus had set it and by the end of the hour she spent explaining it to Jacob, she knew he was a very talented teacher. The essay pushed Jacob's skill to the maximum, but without overstretching his limits.

"You've done really well Jacob, Professor Snape should be pleased with that," Hermione said as they entered the main castle again.

"Thanks Professor Granger, have a nice day."

"You too."

The sun was bright as it spilled into the Entrance Hall from the bustling grounds. Deciding to enjoy the rare British sun she summoned her book, chocolate and sunglasses and made her down the entrance steps. The grass around the lake was littered with scantly clad students trying to tan their pale English skin. Some of the older Gryffindor boys had organised an impromptu Quidditch match against the Ravenclaws that was now playing out above the lake. There were groups of students clustered under the wide trees, studying for their upcoming exams and their were young couples laughing and teasing flirtatiously. For a moment Hermione watched the care-free scene and relished in the easy smiles that took pride of place on each face. She knew now, looking at the teenagers around her that all the loss and pain of the war was entirely worth it because these students did not have to live in fear as she had. She stopped herself before she let her thought drift in the murky depths of her memories.

"Hey, Professor!" Hugh Baker called to her from her right.

She looked across at him, lounging on the grass, a pretty Ravenclaw sprawled across his lap reading a muggle novel and smiled broadly.

"Hello, Hugh, today's sun won't count as an excuse for no homework tomorrow, you know?"

He laughed at her mock stern expression, "Of course not, Professor," he grinned.

Hermione waved to the pair before turning towards the Herbology greenhouses. She meandered through more students before reaching her destination, a tiny patch of grass, barely big enough for a group of four, nestled behind the Herbology greenhouses. A young tree stood at the back of the grass and a thin arm of the Great Lake swirled at the front. She had stumbled upon this little haven in the confused aftermath of the war, when people wandered aimlessly around the school. From then Hermione visited this sanctuary often, finding she could find peace here when her dreams turned to harsher times or concentrate better here when her mind was sluggish. In all the times she had visited it there has never been anyone else present, but now a familiar figure stood at the water's edge. The long, lanky hair, billowing cloak and rigid posture were unmistakeable, yet seeing them in such an environment was hilarious to Hermione. She couldn't stop the explosion of laughter that cascaded past her lips and made his head snap round to find the source of the ejaculation. Silently, he raised his eyebrows before turning to face the water again.

"I'm glad to know I amuse you Granger," he said quietly.

Hermione walked forward on the soft grass until she was level with him about a foot to his left.

"You just look strange with all your cloaks on in such lovely weather," she explained trying to hold back more laughter.

He turned his head to look at her before speaking, "Well, some of us must remain professional," he said, his eyes travelling over her cut off jeans and light camisole.

For a moment Hermione was stunned at what she thought was a reprimand, but the glint in he eyes and his quirked eyebrow soon gave away the humour in his retort.

She played along, her mouth twisting slightly with amusement, "I always was a troublemaker, isn't that right Professor?" She stressed the last word and his eyebrow rose further into his hairline.

"Yes, I believe you were something of the sort."

Hermione finally burst and let her laughter float through the air around them with the pollen and the smell of the flowers. She looked at him as she laughed and thought that for a second a small, but genuine smile had graced his features. Then it was gone.

They stood, neither speaking, both gazing at the tranquil water before them. Hermione counted 56 beats before he turned to her

"Well, excuse me Granger, I have children to boil, essays to fail," this time their was no disguising his smile and she laughed. "And, it seems you have a book to read," he looked down at her hands, "surprisingly."

He walked away leaving Hermione laughing as she marvelled at his free use of humour and his tiny smile. With a small smile of her own she pushed her sunglasses onto her face and seated herself at the foot of the tree. Hermione spent the rest of the day reading, munching her remaining chocolate and soaking up the gentle sun. By the time the sun was beginning to dwindle she was approaching the last chapter of her book and her stomach was grumbling, anticipating the diner to come. Hermione made her way back to the castle, not reflecting on the literature in her hand, as she usually would, but on the small smile she had seen earlier on the face of her ex-professor.

* * *

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	4. Chapter 4

So, perhaps I should say the update will come either Sunday or Monday? Sorry again guys.

Follows straight on from the last chapter.

* * *

Severus watched Hermione from the other side of the lake for the rest of the afternoon. He did not doubt that Macabre had meant what he had said yesterday and he wanted to keep an eye on the young woman. She looked reasonably peaceful. He had become accustomed to her sometimes strained and distant expression, but it was to be expected, almost everyone that had taken part in the war was lost in it's murky depths from time to time. Some of them, like Andromeda Tonks, for example, withdrew further into themselves each day becoming more and more remote, where as others managed to find solace in their work or lover and become a more recognisable semblance of their former selves. One of those people was Harry Potter, who frequently visited Hermione at Hogwarts with his wife Ginny. Hermione seemed to be stuck in limbo. She never seemed completely healed, yet she was getting no worse. Although he had never spoken about it with her and never wished too he knew that her feelings had levelled out because it was exactly how he felt, of course he hid it better.

Presently, lost in her book, with the chocolate working it's magic inside her body, Hermione looked calm and happy and Severus found himself feeling glad. He was confused. When Hermione had first begun working at Hogwarts they had kept up the semi-professional relationship of teacher student. Gradually, he had come to respect her as a Professor herself and was now on more friendly terms with her. He was nowhere near as sociable to her as other teachers were, but he was civil which worked for both of them. This had somehow changed recently, in fact he could pinpoint the start of the change to when he watched her discipline Macabre in the bathroom. Severus now looked at Hermione as an equal, he recognised that she had grown into much more than the know-it-all friend of Harry Potter's that he had seen her as. This confused him, he barely ever thought of anyone as an equal. He had respected Albus in such a way, he was quite fond of Minerva and he could now tolerate Draco Malfoy as the man he had grown into. But Hermione Granger? That was a step too far, wasn't it?

He watched her as she flicked her hair behind her shoulders, closed her book and stretched. For a second Severus was caught by how pretty she looked in her muggle clothes and peaceful state, but he mentally slapped himself and followed her progress back to the college. It was getting dark, so he watched the shadows around her for any change or movement. She was nearly back to the castle entrance when he saw it. A shadow to her left pulled away from the main body of darkness and made a strange noise. Hermione's head flicked round, but the shape had already retreated. She frowned and hurried into the entrance hall, leaving a snickering shadow behind.

Severus followed Macabre into the castle under a disillusionment charm appearing behind him just as he turned into the dungeons.

"Mr Macabre, there are some alterations that need to be made to your Potions project, now is the perfect time for you to do them," Severus spoke as he swept past making his way to the Potions classroom.

"Sorry, Professor I have a prior engagement, I'll come tomorrow after my classes, I am sure it will not take long, it was near perfect," Victor Macabre spoke as if he was God.

"That is not an option."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm sure you heard Macabre," Severus turned to glare at the Slytherin, "Now!"

He resumed walking and after a moment he heard Macabre's steps following behind him. At the moment he could do nothing to punish the boy because he had done nothing to Hermione but he could make his life a little less easy.

Once they were inside his classroom Severus motioned to a seat near the back and Macabre slumped into it. He had purposefully placed the boy in a drafty area as he was dressed in thin robes. Walking over to his desk Severus formulated a plan because unfortunately, as the boy had said, his project was near perfect. Opening the draw in his desk he removed the stack of parchment that contained Macabre's work. He separated it from the rest, leaving the last piece of parchment in the bundle.

"There appears to be a large proportion of the task missing. If you do not understand the task then you should find help from another student, who can explain it to you, however, I believe you were just too lazy to complete the assignment," Severus handed back the work with a sneer. "You will remain in that seat until I am satisfied with your work."

As Severus walked back to his desk he heard Macabre splutter, "There was another sheet of parchment, you've lost it you incompetent fool!"

Severus swept around and almost pounced on the boy, his hands resting on the desk in front of the Slytherin and his face inches from Macabre's. Gratifyingly, Macabre started and leaned away from his Professor.

"Do not," Severus spat the words at the boy, "ever speak to me like that again you foolish cretin," his words were forceful, but barely above a whisper which gave them a deadly sound.

Macabre merely sat back in his seat, a little stunned as Severus returned to his desk, placed his wand on the wood and fixed his student with a harsh stare. Macabre picked up his quill and began writing under the unwavering glare of his Professor. Macabre was not scared, but he was very wary. He knew how powerful a wizard sat in the room with him and he also knew that he was treading a thin line with that wizard.

It had been a difficult project and Severus had given the class a week and a half to do it, which showed the severity of the task. This meant that Macabre had only just finished as the clock above Severus's desk struck eleven o'clock. For the last hour his stomach had been grumbling and he had begun to yawn.

"Next time you will finish your work in your own time and hand it in complete, then you will not have to miss diner. Mr Macabre if you are late to double potions in the morning, there will be no concession and you will receive a detention." Severus sat at his desk unmoving and pointed his wand at the door, telling Macabre he was to leave without another word.

* * *

Macabre returned to the Slytherin common room and began ordering his friends to find him some food. As people rushed out through the portrait hole a tall disillusioned figure slipped in and watched as the room emptied leaving Macabre alone with Travis Hendrickson.

"That bastard!"

"Who? Where have you been? Please tell me you haven't been following Granger all this time!" Hendrickson asked quickly.

"No, bloody Snape made me redo my Potions project, that idiot!" Macabre spat wringing his hands.

"Oh, do you think he knew you were following Granger?"

Macabre picked a stack of parchment up from a nearby desk and began to screw each one up, throwing the work into the fire with total disregard of who it belonged to. He didn't speak for time, but he twisted his face into raging expressions.

"No, he doesn't know. I thought he would be more, everyone raves about him, the hero, brave, intelligent, unbelievably sharp, but he's not. He's an idiot, that prat couldn't see what I was doing if I waved it in front of his face. Even if he could, my plan is too water tight for him to have any proof." Macabre spoke the words with disgust and Hendrickson nodded his head.

Severus let his face twist into a devious smile. He didn't know how or when, but he would bring Macabre down a peg or two.

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

Sorry for the lack of update, my laptop had a number of technical hitches (which I am sure were a result of it's personal vendetta against me), my friend has finally fixed it for me, after mush loss of work and stress. I think I was actually supposed to born into the 19th century because I have no clue whatsoever about technology and couldn't tell you what was wrong with it even if my friend was sat he with me!

There was a faint light filtering through the open door, leaving a dusty trail through the dark air. Hermione knew it was foolish of her to fear the safe castle she now thought of as her home, but there was something foreboding about her dark Charms classroom that night. The students in her last class of the day had been practising on silver cutlery. The utensils now cast strange shadows onto the stone walls in the dim flicker of hr candlelight. She often worked late in her classroom and never found it daunting, like she did this evening. Over the last four months she had covered the walls in moving pictures demonstrating correct spell work and dull portraits of famous wizard or witches. In her first week she had enlisted the help of her classes to create vibrant poster that now hung proudly next to the ageing tapestries. Hermione had even begun to add famous quotations from muggle books and poems. The headmistress had encouraged her in this endeavour and had eve permitted her to begin a Muggle Literature class on a Friday evening for interested students. So far only seven students came on a regular basis, but Hermione was pleased at the progression considering the recent history of the school. The teachers at Hogwarts were persistently struggling to convince the students that it was no longer a crime to have any affiliation with muggles.

Presently, Hermione could not make out the elegant script above the door. She knew that it read, "Romeo, Romeo, where for art thou Romeo," but she could not prevent her mind from turning the letters into mythical creatures playing out a barbaric scene over the entrance. Hermione drew her eyes away from the line of Shakespeare, mastered her over active imagination and continued her marking. She completed three essays on the correct use of wand movements, pronunciation and origins of the _____ charm before a strange feeling overcame her and she looked up sharply. The room was unchanged. She was sure she had felt eyes upon her, as if a silent voyeur was hiding somewhere in the darkness. Berating herself for being so foolish she returned to her work; not before she had placed her wand on the desk beside her hand. After giving two Outstandings to a Ravenclaw couple she heard a faint murmur and an abrupt muffled shout.

She jumped up from the desk, gathering her wand and striding towards the door; her Gryffindor instinct overtook her fear and she waltzed into the hallway, A lot of students had recently been pushing the boundaries of the night time curfew and she was reaching the end of her tether.

She stepped past a statue of a weathered looking wizard and her mind skittered back in time, immersing her in memories of when this relic had lain strew across the floor in pieces. Once trapped in this trail of reminiscences, she began to remember the way her friends had lain likewise, broken and lost forever, for they could not be so easily put back together as this lucky statue. Visibly shaking herself, Hermione cast aside those torturous recollections and moved further into the corridor.

She heard someone shuffling further down the corridor and started to lengthen her stride. The students were beginning to take this to far. She rounded a corner in the corridor and nearly jumped back in shock as she saw all of the torches had been extinguished and the hallway was completely black.

"Whoever is in this corridor should understand that they are out after curfew and will be heavily punished for."

Her own voice echoed back to her. She lit her wand and moved hesitantly forward. Hermione thought she was past sneaking down silent castle corridors, apparently not. She could no longer hear the shuffling, but when she strained her ears a quiet moaning presented itself. She passed a torch bracket on the wall and reached up to relight it with the tip of her wand. The dim light fell across the space around her. As she turned her heart stopped, her wand dropped from her hand and a strained gasp escaped her lips. There in front of her eyes, illuminated by the dim orange light, was a huge pool of what could only be blood and scattered around it were the remnants of another fallen statue. It's ancient limbs crumbling. She gasped for air, her mind flashed to events in her past and she had to lean against the wall. Then her teacher mindset kicked in and she hurriedly looked for the hurt student who surely must be he source of all this blood. There was no sign of a student anywhere and Hermione began to spin wildly. After a few moments she started to regulate her breathing and looked around again, but there was nothing there when she turned back to the pool of blood. It was gone. The floor was clean and the statue was in perfect condition. Her heart hammering against her rib cage, Hermione closed her eyes and told herself to stop being silly and get more sleep. The war was over, she had nothing to worry about, Hogwarts was safe again for her. Slowly she returned to her rooms, rubbing her eyes and calming her raging mind.

As she retreated down the corridor, Victor Macabre stepped out from the shadows and tapped his forehead with his wand. The disillusionment charm fell away from him and he laughed quietly.

Hermione thought she heard a sinister laugh, but she carried on walking trying to overcome her own lurking demons, oblivious to the real danger that skulked behind her.

Sorry this is kind of a dud chapter, but it needed to be done, more Severus/Hermione on the way :D

Review: villafoo, notwritten, Severessa

Story Alert: physics chick, villafoo, Insanity on High, Severessa,

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